Method and apparatus of radium coating



Aug. 23, 1955 R. e. FORDYCE ET AL METHOD AND APPARATUS OF RADIUM COATING 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 8, 1952 1955 R. s. FORDYCE ET AL 2,716,076

METHOD AND APPARATUS OF RADIUM COATING Filed 001:. 8, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN V EN TOR.

United States Patent METHOD AND APPARATUS OF RADIUM COATING Rufus G. Fordyce, Glencoe, and Clifford J. Rugh, Oak

Park, ill, assignors to Luminous Processes, Inc., Chicago, 111., a corporation of Delaware Application )ctober 8, 1952, Serial No. 313,758

8 Claims. (Cl. 117-112) Our invention relates to method and apparatus of radium coating and is particularly adapted for, but not limited to, the coating of clock hands and the like with luminous material.

The present practice is to coat clock hands and the like with radium luminous material by hand with the coating material individually applied to each article. In some places the application of the coating material is rendered still more tedious and difficult by laws forbidding the use of brushes in applying such material.

An object of our invention is to greatly facilitate the application of radium luminous materials and other similar materials to clock hands and other like articles.

Another object of our invention is to reduce materially the cost of coating clock hands and the like with radium material while at the same time fully protecting the health of the operator.

Another object of our invention is to provide a new and improved method of coating clock hands and the like with radium luminous material and other similar materials.

Another object of our invention is to provide new and improved apparatus for carrying out the method.

Another object of our invention is to provide new and improved apparatus which will accurately control the area to be coated so that the coating will be confined to exactly those portions of the clock hands which it is desired to coat.

Another object of our invention is to provide new and improved apparatus which can be readily adapted to apply difierent coating materials, and whereby expensive coating material not being utilized can be readily protected against deterioration.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent as the description proceeds.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a perspective view of an apparatus embodying our invention and illustrating the manner in which such apparatus is utilized to apply a coating to clock hands;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 illustrates the manner in which our novel apparatus may be mounted on a table or other suitable support;

Fig. 4 is a transverse vertical sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1, illustrating in greater detail the manner in which the clock hands are brought into contact with the coating screen;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the manner in which clock hands are mounted for coating;

Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional View taken on the line 6 -6 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 6 but showing the straight type of clock hand illustrated in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing the tank containing the coating material removed from the apparatus and covered to prevent loss and deterioration of the coating material when not in active use.

Referring to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, it will be seen that we have provided an apparatus having a base 10 of metal 2,716,076 Patented Aug. 23, 1955 or other suitable material and preferably of suflicient thickness to permit threading of bolts therein. The base 10 may be of rectangular or any other desired configuration and is adapted for mounting on the top 12 of a table, indicated generally by reference character 14. The table 14 is illustrated as having legs 16 and one or more cross-members 18. The base 10 is provided with openings 20 for receiving screws or other securing means whereby the base may be attached to the table top 12 or other suitable support.

A plate 22 is mounted upon the base 10 by means of brackets 24 and bolts or similar securing means 26 which are threaded into the base 10. The plate 22 is provided with rearwardly extending spring clips 28 adapted to removably attach to the plate 22 a tank 30 for the radium luminous material or other coating material. The tank 30 rests upon the base 10 but is held in fixed position by the clips 28 and plate 22. This tank 30 is preferably made of are welded stainless steel, although it may be made of any other suitable material, but must be free of copper, since copper tends to stain and discolor radium coating material. The plate 22 is preferably of thick material and may be made of steel or any other suitable material, such for example as lead, which is particularly advantageous in that it provides additional protection against the luminous material in the container 30.

A wire mesh screen 32 is mounted for vertical movement into and out of the container 30. This screen con stitutes a part of an assembly including laterally spaced arms 34 attached to opposite ends of a cross-member 36. The cross-member 36 is removably attached by screws 38 to the cross-member 40 of a receptacle frame for moving the screen into and out of the container 30.

The cross-member 40 is welded or otherwise attached to the laterally extending end 42 of a bracket 44 welded or otherwise aflixed to a slide 46. A spacing block 48 is interposed between and attached to the upper ends of the slide 46 and a second slide 50. The slide 50 is guided for vertical reciprocation between spaced plates 52 and 54 which are held in fixed relationship by spacing strips 56 and 58, the parts 52, 54, 56 and 58 being secured together by welding or any other suitable manner. The lower end of the plate 54 is bent laterally as indicated at 60, and is secured to the base 10 by bolts 62.

The screen assembly is moved up and down by a rod 64 whose upper end is spot-welded or otherwise secured to the slide 46. The lower end of the rod 64 is pivotally attached at 66 to a foot treadle 68 pivotally mounted at 70 on table cross-member 18. When the foot treadle 68 is moved in a clockwise direction about its pivot by the operators foot, the screen 32 is elevated to raised position, whereas the spring 72 returns the screen assembly to lowered position when the pressure of the operators foot on the foot treadle is released.

It is important that the upper edge of the screen be accurately positioned when the screen is in elevated position, and for this purpose, we provide an adjustable stop 74 (Fig. 4). This stop is in the form of a bolt threaded in a hor zontally disposed member 76 of T- shaped cross-section, the adjusting member 74 being secured in adjusted position by a lock-nut 78. Opposite ends of the horizontally disposed member 76 are attached to fixed plate 52 through spacing blocks 80.

The clock hands to be coated are preferably attached to cards of cardboard or other suitable material. In Fig. 1, we have shown such a card 82 as being provided with a plurality of clock hands 84. in this particular figure a part of the card 82 is cut away and illustrated in dotand-dash lines in order to disclose more clearly the structure of the apparatus behind the card, whereas, in Fig. 5 we have shown in its entirety a similar card 86 upon which are mounted curved hands 88. Figs. 6 and 7 illustrate more fully different ways of mounting the clock hands and like articles on cards of this type.

In Fig. 7 the card 82 is provided with a plurality of openings into which thetubular upper part '90 of the hands 84 are pressed. YThe frictional engagement between the'tubularpo'rtions 90 of the hands'and the walls of'the openings into which they are pressed is sufiicient to retain the hands and card in attached relationship. The curved hands 88 shown in Figs. 5 and 6 have relatively short tubular portions 92 which barely extend through the card 86. Under these circumstances it is desirable to apply an adhesive strip 94 to the back of the card 86 in such manner that the strip 94 engages the adjacent tubular'portions'92 and serves to retain the hands 88 attached to the card 86.

We also provide guides or supports upon which the hand carrying cards may be rested during the coating operation. These supports or guides include angular brackets 96 adjustably attached by bolts 98 to uprights 100. The uprights 100 have backwardly extending feet v102 attached to the base 10 by bolts 104.

We have found that a 30-mesh wire screen formed of either Monel metal or stainless steel gives excellent results, although other sizes of wire mesh screen may be in the manipulation of the hands during the coating 7 operation.

In utilizing our new and improved apparatus to carry out our novel process, the container 30 is filled with lumi-' nous radium material, or other suitable material, and the stop 74 and independently adjustable guides 96 are adjusted so that when the screen is in elevated position and a card, such as indicated at '82, is placed on the guides 96, the top of the screen will define upper limits of that portion of the hands to be coated. The operator then presses on the pedal 68 to elevate the screen and hold it in elevated position against the stop 74 throughout the coating operation.v A card is then placed upon the guides 96, as indicated in Fig. 1, and advanced toward the screen 30 until the hands 84 are brought in contact with the screen and the coating material thereon. The card is then removed from the guides 96 and placed in a horizontal position so that the coating material will flow sufliciently to eliminate any high spots and provide a uniform coat ing of even thickness. We have found that where a wire screen is utilized as the coating member the edges of the hands are also coated to provide a superior appear- After the card has been removed the operator releases his pressure on the pedal to permit spring 72 to returnrthe screen to its lowermost position in the container 30. Because of the high viscosity of the coating material it is' usually desirable to provide a return spring rather than rely upon the weight of the parts to return the screen to lowermost position.

When the hands are curved, as shown in Figs. 4, 5. and 6, the card is placed on the guides 96 and advanced in the same manner. However, after the upper portions of the hands have been brought into contact with the screen and coated, the card is then rocked as indicated in dot-and-dash lines in Fig. 4 to bring the curved lower ends of the hands into contact with the screen. While the card can be removed as soon as it has been rocked sufficiently to bring the lowermost ends of the hands into contact with the screen, we have found it desirable to rock the card back to an approximately half-way position before removing the hands from contact with the screen. The point of last contact between the curved hands and screen receives an extra deposit of coating material, and,

where this point is midway of the hands, the coating mate rial can flow in both directions when the hands are laid in a generally horizontal position, and a more even thickness of coating is eifected.

If desired, the hands or other articles to be coated may have received an undercoating of lacquer or other similar material.v The most common procedure is to apply such undercoating by means of a spray, but for the purposes of our invention it is immaterial whether or not the hands are provided with such an undercoating and how the undercoating is applied.

The up-and-down movement of the screen in the container 30 maintains a suflicient agitation of the coating material to prevent settling thereof so that the coating material remains uniform throughout.

when the latter is lowered into the container since the upper edge of the screen defines the upper limit of the coated area of the hand. Coating material should be added to the container from time to time so that the coating material always covers the upper edge of the screen. a a

From the foregoing it will be apparent that we have provided a simple apparatus and method for quickly,

easily, economically, and efiectively coating a large number of clock hands, or similar articles, with a single, compact piece of equipment; It is only necessary for the operator to depress the foot pedal to raise the screen, apply the card to the. guides and press the hands carried by such card into engagement with the screen, remove the card, and release the foot pedal to complete the coating of a multiplicity of hands. This operation consumes little time and energy and can be quickly repeated for long periods of time without fatigue.

Because a single piece of apparatus can coat such a large number of articles in a short time, we have found it desirable to. adapt the apparatus. to apply difierent coating materials since a number of articles to be coated with a given material is usually insuflicientto require the full time of the apparatus and its operator. As heretofore pointed out, the container 30 is held in place solely by the spring clips 28. This container can be readily removed by simply unscrewing bolts 26 to permit plate 22 to he slid forwardly and then' pulling container 30 from the clips 28. Another container with a different coating material can then be inserted in the clips 28, plate 22 returned to position and secured by screwing bolts 26 into the base 10. a

If the screen were to be cleaned whenever a different coating material was to be used, there would be a considerable loss of coating material, so we have also pro vided means whereby the screen and its supports may be readily detached from its supporting and operating mechanism and kept in the container 30 while the material therein is not in use. In order to remove the screen it is only necessary to unscrew bolts 38. In Fig. 8 we have shown'the container and screen assembly removed from the rest of the apparatus and enclosed in a cover 106 which prevents evaporation of the coating material and contamination by dirt and other impurities.

While we have illustrated and described only a single embodiment of our invention, it is to be understood that our invention may assume numerous forms, and includes all modifications, variations, .and equivalents coming within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. That method of applying radium luminous material and similar expensive coatings to clock hands and the like so that substantially the entire surface to. be coated is covered comprising the steps of mounting a plurality of such articles on a common support with the surfacesto be coated substantially in a common vertical plane, providing a member having a vertical face covered with coating material, positioning the supporting member so that It is important that the coating material in the container be maintained at such height as to cover the upper edge of the screen the upper limit of the portions of the articles to be coated conform to the upper edge of the vertical coating face, moving said articles laterally into engagement with the coating face, rocking the support and articles to bring curved portions of the articles into contact with said face, reversing the rocking movement of the support, and separating the articles from said face.

2. That method of applying radium luminous material and similar expensive coatings to clock hands and the like so that substantially the entire surface to be coated is covered comprising the steps of mounting a plurality of such articles on a common support with the surfaces to be coated substantially in a common vertical plane, providing a member having a vertically disposed foraminous coating face covered with coating material, positioning the supporting member so that the upper limit of the portions of the articles to be coated conform to the upper edge of the vertical coating face, moving said articles laterally into engagement with the coating face, rocking the support and articles to bring curved portions of the articles into contact with said face, reversing the rocking movement of the support to a partial extent, and separating the articles from said face.

3. That method of applying radium luminous material and similar expensive coatings to clock hands and the like so that substantially the entire surface to be coated is covered comprising the steps of mounting a plurality of such articles on a common support with the surfaces to be coated substantially in a common vertical plane, providing a member having a vertically disposed foraminous coating face parallel to said vertical plane and covered with coating material, positioning the supporting member so that the upper limit of the portions of the articles to be coated conform to the upper edge of the vertical coating face, moving said articles laterally into engagement with the coating face, and separating the articles from said face.

4. That method of simultaneously coating a plurality of clock hands and similar articles with radium luminous material which comprises mounting a plurality of such articles on a common support with the surfaces to be coated substantially in a common vertical plane, providing a vertically disposed wire screen and a body of radium luminous coating material, shifting said screen into and out of the body of radium luminous coating material, and moving said support laterally to bring the surfaces of the articles to be coated into contact with the radium luminous coating material carried by said screen while the latter is out of said material.

5. Apparatus for use on a table for coating clock hands and the like with radium luminous material comprising a base adapted to be attached to the table top, a vertically disposed plate attached to said base, a container attached to said plate, a wire screen, a frame for said screen, a carrier suspended from said base and adapted to move said screen and frame vertically with respect to said container, a guide for said carrier, said guide being attached to said base, an operating mechanism suspended from said base and operatively connected to said carrier, a stop for said carrier, said stop being attached to said base, and guides attached to said base at opposite ends of said screen and supporting a member carrying articles to be coated by engagement with said screen.

6. Apparatus for use on a table for coating clock hands and the like with radium luminous material comprising a base adapted to be attached to the table top, a vertically disposed plate removably attached to said base, a container removably attached to said plate, a screen assembly, a carrier suspended from said base and adapted to move said screen assembly vertically with respect to said container, a detachable connection between said assembly and carrier, a guide for said carrier, said guide being attached to said base, an operating mechanism suspended from said base, said operating mechanism being connected to said carrier, an adjustable stop for said carrier, said adjustable stop being attached to said base, guides attached to said base at opposite ends of said screen and supporting a member carrying articles to be coated by engagement with said screen, and independently adjustable means supporting said latter guides on said base.

7. Apparatus for use on a table for coating clock hands and the like with radium luminous material, comprising a base adapted to be attached to the table top, a container removably attached to said base, a vertically disposed coating member, a carrier suspended from said base and adapted to move said member vertically into and out of said container, a guide for said carrier, said guide being attached to said base, an operating mechanism suspended from said base, said operating mechanism being connected to said carrier and adapted to raise said carrier, a stop for said carrier, said stop being attached to said base, resilient means urging said carrier downward, guides attached to said base and supporting a member carrying articles to be coated by engagement with said coating member, and independently adjustable means supporting said latter guides on said base.

8. Apparatus for coating clock hands and the like comprising a base, a vertically disposed plate removably attached to said base, a container removably attached to said plate, a vertically disposed wire screen, a frame for said screen, a carrier suspended from said base for moving said screen and frame vertical with respect to said container, a detachable connection between said screen and frame and said carrier, a guide for said carrier, said guide being attached to said base, an operating mechanism suspended from said base, said operating mechanism being attached to said carrier, an adjustable stop for said carrier, said adjustable stop being mounted on said base, guides attached to said base at opposite ends of said screen and frame for supporting a member carrying articles to be coated by engagement with said screen, and independently adjustable means for supporting said latter guides on said base.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 622,513 Murname Apr. 4, 1899 1,166,461 Junghans Jan. 4, 1916 1,211,951 Lynch Jan. 9, 1917 1,467,343 Tibbetts Sept. 11, 1923 1,620,802 Cosgrove Mar. 15, 1927 2,279,994 Jones Apr. 14, 1952 

1. THAT METHOD OF APPLYING RADIUM LUMINOUS MATERIAL AND SIMILAR EXPANSIVE COATINGS TO CLOCK HANDS AND THE LIKE SO THAT SUBSTANTIALLY THE ENTIRE SURFACE TO BE COATED IS COVERED COMPRISING THE STEPS OF MOUNTING A PLURALITY OF SUCH ARTICLES ON A COMMON SUPPORT WITH THE SURFACES TO BE CAOTED SUBSTANTIALLY IN A COMMON VERTICAL PLANE, PROVIDING A MEMBER HAVING A VERTICAL FACE COVERED WITH COATING MATERIAL, POSITIONING THE SUPPORTING MEMBER SO THAT THE UPPER LIMIT OF THE PORTIONS OF THE ARTICLES TO BE COATED CONFORM TO THE UPPER EDGE OF THE VERTICAL COATING FACE, MOVING SAID ARTICLES LATERALLY INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH THE COATING FACE, ROCKING THE SUPPORT AND ARTICLES TO BRING CURVED PORTIONS OF THE ARTICLES INTO CONTACT WITH SAID FACE, REVERSING THE ROCKING MOVEMENT OF THE SUPPORT, AND SEPARATING THE ARTICLES FROM SAID FACE. 